Medievl; Visual Arts; Painting; Gender

While the usual visualisation of the Seven mortal sins during the high Middle Ages stresses rather the individual social strata or groups and associates them with the particular sin, the late medieval moral discourse is more aware of gender. The female body in this context serves as a visual instrument that can be manipulated, distorted or even turned into unique monstrous forms expressing purely negative (sinful, sexual and repulsive) aspects and moral examples used within the period pastoral theology mainly associated with the monastic environment. The paper will introduce two 14th century monastic manuscripts of Bohemian origin presenting (so called Liber depictus and the Metten Bible) unique visualisation of the Woman of the seven mortal sins that will be discussed within the period anatomic understanding of female body as well as in the context of monastic devotional practice.